Owen

I'd post a pic of mine, but it is here already. If I was honest I have a love hate relationship with mine. I have sold it and bought it back once already (as I have with my Demeter and my Streamline - if you ever buy anything from me, be prepared to sell it back) The Piezo is lush beyond. The EMG DC that was in it was harsher than........... a harsh thing. I now have an EMG P in it which is much nicer, but there is a volume differential now. It is out on loan at the moment but IIRC there is massive trim-pottage in the control cavity which I shall dive into when it comes back. I do not really like the neck profile, which is odd because I am really a bass tart and will go with any bass usually. I love the shape, I love the weight, I love the wood, I love the locking machines. I have just put a piezo bridge on another bass and am experimenting with pre-amps to see if I can replicate the piezo lushness (did I mention that the piezo sound was lush?). The ACG pre in a box I have seems to be quite close at the moment. The Piezo in the Bolin is all I thought they should be but I had never actually heard. I am not particularly fussed about the airy top end (but it is certainly there), it is the rich as chocolate low end which sends me (maaaan). The bottom end seems to extend all the way down. It is not a muddy rumble, just really clean and smooth with real LF extension. It sits REALLY well with acoustic instruments in a way that all my active basses over the years do not quite manage for me (and I have come to the stage where I am not particularly bothered what anyone else thinks). I might get the neck re-shaped. I might sell it. I might leave it as it is - it is safe to say no other bass has snared me with it's sound quite like this one. It is well phit.

Shame on you for not sharing the Bolin love. They are pretty rare (not as in vintage and all that) but they come up now and again and are very light indeed. The fact that they have the best piezo tone ever (yes I stated that as a fact even though it is only any opinion) is a bonus as well. [url="http://www.bolinguitars.com/features.html"]http://www.bolinguitars.com/features.html[/url] [quote name='warwickhunt' post='1053213' date='Dec 9 2010, 07:00 PM']I have the self same trouble. There are light basses out there but to save yourself grief I'd define what you mean by light! IMHO it needs to be lighter than 9lb to qualify as light, whereas I've bought basses off Basschat whereby owners have made claims of 'featherweight' and 'the lightest bass I've ever owned'... one can only assume that the latter comment was from someone economical with the truth, who has only ever owned one bass as the bass in question was closer to 11lb! The Fender Precision Lyte basses are pretty light and many of the new CV Jazz and Precision basses are around about 9lb (the two I've owned were just over). Though many claim that the Lakland Skylines 'can' be light I've yet to find one that is genuinely under 9lb (x2 DJ's were both way over 9lb and the JO was the 11lb offender). As has been mentioned there is the 'cricket bat' option and SOME hollowbodies (though beware some of them have solid cores and the extra large body size on some, really bumps the weight), such as the violin basses. If your budget stretches you can find some very lightweight Warwick Streamer basses but they need to be the early to mid 80's ones; I have two, one of them is 7lb 7oz the other about 8lb. I also have a Zon Sonus which is 8.5lb. The obvious which I'm sure you already do is to wear a nice wide strap. Best of luck from a fellow sufferer. [/quote]

I kept the Demeter and sold the Avalon. Don't get me wrong, the Avalon had RIGHTEOUS tone, just the lack of EQ was an issue with my Double Bass for live work. It needs taming. I would love to have both, but that would be silly.

I need a hard case for my Hofner President. It strikes me that the only Semi-Acoustic bass case out there is the Jack Casady one, but I need measurements on a JC bass - lower bout, upper bout, overall length and depth at bridge. Does anyone out there have one? TIA

[url="http://line6.com/community/thread/42570"]http://line6.com/community/thread/42570[/url]

[quote name='pete.young' post='1045833' date='Dec 2 2010, 11:38 PM']Sorry, but no. In order to retune the Variax you need the Variax Workbench, which only works with the guitars..[/quote] Phew! That is another bass I need off the list

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='1043910' date='Dec 1 2010, 03:15 PM']I've got a Chevin A1000 I bought from Flanker during the summer which has had no use since I got it ... and clearly now won't be getting any for a while. I can pass that on for £160.[/quote] Chevin amps rock. With the right lead you can bridge that to deliver 1.2K into 8ohms.

[quote name='Doctor J' post='1045351' date='Dec 2 2010, 05:01 PM']Indeed. The variax guitar does digital retuning on the fly, just tell it what you want each string's pitch to be and off you go. I can't see it working as a pedal though, you'd need to be impossibly precise with your playing so there aren't any fluffed notes or two strings ringing out at once, chords, etc would be hugely problematic. The piezo pickup for each string is the key to it on the guitar.[/quote] Does the Variax bass do that? Could I go down to bottom F sharp? Now I'm excited!

[quote name='geoffbassist' post='1026812' date='Nov 17 2010, 12:51 PM']I've haven't tried any innovation strings. Let us know how you get on. Cheers Geoff[/quote] I have, I like them. If anyone wants to try an Innovation Rockabilly B, drop me a PM.

[quote name='icastle' post='1020290' date='Nov 11 2010, 03:50 PM']Is there perhaps a friendly luthier on this site that could act as an intermediary on a "don't come running to me if you can't get it to work" basis? Of course, you "could" always become "Owen Bass Research" and order one for a new prototype you are working on... but that'd be sneaky and we'd never condone that.... would we? [/quote] I like the way you are thinking!

[quote name='icastle' post='1020171' date='Nov 11 2010, 02:51 PM']Ok. Clutching at straws here but the only realistic thing I can think of now is have you considered dropping Bolin a mail (they look like very laid back guys!) to see if they have any systems left over? As it was a standard production model there are usually a few odds and sods left over in dark corners...[/quote] I have tried, but to no avail. However, another email cannot hurt

It's a bass made by a company called Bolin. They are a high end US custom maker who bought out a line of production models and then stopped. Fishman have told me that this kit is only available to OEM manufacturers so I am guessing that my search is futile. It is the only piezo system I have tried that has worked for me. I'm sure that there is other stuff out there, but without direct experience of it I would be reticent to drop the £ on them. [quote name='icastle' post='1019624' date='Nov 11 2010, 03:52 AM']Can't find any trace of a product from that description - what bass is the one you have in? Ian[/quote]

Buying and selling 2nd here is more or less cost neutral. Taking a loss of £20 or £30 is certainly cheaper than a day trip to London or wherever both in time and money. There is also the thrill of the chase

[quote name='icastle' post='1018754' date='Nov 10 2010, 01:40 PM']Can't find anything like that I'm afraid I presume it's on an acoustic or DB?[/quote] No it is in a Bass Guitar with a piezo bridge. It is an internal pre-amp.